Undercurrent
by Allaine
Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like.  NOT part of the Unacceptable Sitch series, this is a response to a challenge for a KimShego version of the episode Bonding.
1. Chapter One

Title: Undercurrent (1/??)  
Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding.  
Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!  
Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.  
Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 1

"You're joking, right?" Shego asked.

Doctor Drakken looked at her. "No. Why would I be joking?"

"Uh, because you can't shoot straight?"

"Shego, why must you say hurtful things? And I _am_ the one who signs your checks, you know."

"Actually, I use direct deposit."

"Look, Shego, I may not have passed my archery class in phys ed when I was in sixth grade, but I'm perfectly capable of firing - "

"Firing, yes. Hitting something other than the wall, no."

"They're heat-seeking, all right?!"

Shego grinned. "Oh. Well, then you should be able to avoid screwing THAT up. Unless you take out the boiler."

Drakken's head sank. "Oh, just do what you do. Distract Kim Possible and, and . . ."

"Buffoon," Shego said, not bothering to say Stoppable's name. He'd forgotten a dozen times.

"And the buffoon! Meanwhile, I shall fire these two projectiles - "

"Two? Aren't you taking a pretty big assumption there? What if she dodges them? What if - "

"I only had time to build two! I hate having a lair where they turn the hot water off at ten!"

Shego folded her arms and sighed. "Two projectiles," she prompted him.

"Yes, projectiles! When the projectiles are fastened to their bodies, something very eee-vil will happen," Drakken said, grinning wickedly.

"Oooooh, scary," Shego said.

Drakken smacked his face. "Shego!"

"What? You won't even tell me what they do!"

"It's a surprise!"

"Now I'm really scared."

* * *

"Give it up, Shego!" Kim demanded.

Shego yawned. She held up a small white index card. "Flee now, Kim Possible, before something - oh hell, I'm not reading this. You're going to die a horrible death, something so scary that he can't even tell ME about it. Yada yada yada." The card burned away to nothing in her hand.

"Maybe he's afraid of your biting sarcasm?" Ron asked. "Words can hurt too, you know."

"He's got a point there, Shego," Drakken's voice floated in from somewhere.

"So can sharp claws and green flames," Shego muttered. She spread her arms and leapt toward Kim, who expertly dodged.

"Don't worry, Kim, I'll - uh, run away when something bad happens," Ron said cheerfully. There didn't seem to be any death rays or elaborate traps to interfere with.

"Thanks," she said as she pulled back and narrowly avoided having her chest flayed by fiery claws.

"Yes, thank you, too, buffoon," Drakken murmured from his hiding place. "You stay right there, out in the open, while I first take care of Kim Possible." Rising slightly, he adjusted the cannon on his shoulder and fired.

"Bang?" Ron asked. "Was that a bang I just heard?"

"Yeah. And here's a boom," Shego replied, putting her hands together and clapping a burst of plasma in Kim's direction. She somersaulted backwards and ducked, avoiding the blast.

Her defensive posture exposed her, however, to the object flying directly toward her from behind.

"KP!" Ron called out, pointing.

"Huh?" she asked, turning around -

Just in time for the crescent-shaped piece of metal to strike her in the neck. She lurched backwards, unable to breathe for a moment from the blow to her throat. Then the two ends of the half-circle joined in the back, locking the device around her neck.

"What the hell?" Kim said, tugging uselessly at her new necklace.

"That was my reaction," Shego replied. "Where's the big scary? Trust Drakken to always let you down in the end."

"Remember what the buffoon said about hurtful words, Shego!" Drakken shouted back as he stood up, turned, and fired his second shot at Ron.

"The buffoon has a name!" Ron yelled. "Aagghh!" He saw the second shot moving unerringly toward him, and he turned and ran.

"Eh?" Rufus asked as he looked out of Ron's pocket. He climbed out, scrabbled up Ron's shirt, and looked backwards, perching on Ron's shoulder.

Just as it was approaching the nape of Ron's neck, Rufus' body heat threw the projectile off slightly, and it veered, striking Rufus in the forehead. The mole rat squealed and fell backwards. Ron skidded to a stop and caught him. "Rufus!"

The device moved erratically as it spun away and bounced off the wall.

Shego looked up at Drakken, who was fidgeting nervously. "Told you two wasn't enough," she said snidely.

She wasn't even paying attention any longer to the device, which re-established its heat sensors and flew toward the nearest target. It smacked into the back of Shego's neck and locked around her throat.

"Uh-oh," Drakken said.

"Hey, you two match," Ron said.

"We do NOT!" Kim and Shego both retorted before looking at each other.

"Well, that's just _ducky_," Shego snarled. "Could you wait one minute? I've got to have a talk with Drakken about his target practice." Then she ran away from Kim and toward the ladder that would take her up to where Drakken was standing.

"Shego, don't!" Drakken shouted.

"Scared? You should - aaaaghhh!"

"Aaaagggghhh!" Kim said at the exact same moment.

Kim and Shego's collars activated simultaneously, crackling with electricity as they sent jolts through both women's bodies. Shego tumbled to her knees while Kim pulled again at the collar. It seemed only to amplify the voltage, and she let go, crying out.

Drakken laughed nervously. "Uh, surprise, Shego?"

The dark-haired woman glared up at him. "Turn the damn thing off!"

"I, uh, can't. You see, Kim Possible," he said, confidence returning to his voice as he focused on his nemesis and tried to ignore Shego, "these inventions of mine are quite fond of each other. The farther apart they get from each other, the more pain it causes them - and you! Whenever you and the buffoon are more than three feet apart from each other, they will send electricity coursing through your veins, and the more the distance grows, the worse the pain becomes!"

Ron gasped. He ran towards Kim. "Don't worry, KP, I - hey, you said they turn off when I'm within three feet!"

"No, I didn't," Drakken said.

"You kinda did!"

"He's reading from those stupid index cards," Shego growled. "He means me and Kimmie."

Kim groaned as she stumbled to her feet. Fighting the collar, she staggered towards Shego and collapsed a couple feet away when the electricity was shut off.

"Nice going, Doctor D," Shego muttered. "Now how do I take it off?"

"Yes, well, you see, they were perhaps designed not to be taken off."

Shego sat up. "You mean you don't know HOW?!"

"It wasn't part of the plan! At least look at it this way, Shego - now they can't take you jail! Not without taking Kim Possible too, anyway."

"Yeah, sharing a cell with Shego? Not my kind of thing," Kim said.

Snarling, Shego raised a hand and flung it toward Drakken. A wave of plasma flew out and knocked the gun from his grasp. He yelped and ran in the opposite direction.

"I'll kill him," Shego muttered as she got up.

"And kill us while you're at it," Kim told her. "How far will you get with that thing wrapped around your neck?"

"You'll just have to tag along."

"Shego, he said he doesn't KNOW how to remove these. What's the point of beating him up when he can't get them off?"

"I'll feel better!"

"Wouldn't you rather get these off as soon as possible? I mean," Kim said, scowling as the enormity of Drakken's actions sunk in, "if we don't want to get hit with paralyzing electricity, we're going to have to spend hours - even DAYS - within a yard of each other."

Shego fell over. "Oh, shit," she groaned. "Now I've got to spend the day with you? How could my life possibly get any worse?"

"Uh, you get to spend it with me too?" Ron suggested.

Shego put her hands over her face and started pounding the back of her head against the floor.

To be continued . . .


	2. Chapter Two

Title: Undercurrent (2)

Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding".

Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!

Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.

Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 2

"Dr. Possible? Your daughter is waiting for you in your office," the nurse told her.

"Thanks, Sue," the surgeon replied as she stripped off her gloves. "I wonder why she's here?"

A few minutes later Mrs. Dr. Possible opened the door to her office. "All right, young lady, what's the - Kim?"

Kim took the bag of ice off her face as her mother entered. The skin around her right eye had become purple and swollen. "Hey, mom," she said, putting the ice over her black eye again.

"Your mother is the best doctor you could take us to? I'm screwed," Shego said grumpily as she slouched in a chair.

"You!" Kim's mother gasped, easily recognizing the evil sidekick. "Kimmie? Ron? What's going on here?"

"Drakken death-trap gone haywire," Ron said sagely.

"Usually that's a good thing," Kim muttered. "Shego and I have these metal collars around our necks, and we can't be more than three feet apart or they become electrified. I was hoping you could maybe remove them?"

"Oh, honey," Dr. Possible said. "What about that black eye?"

Kim wordlessly pointed at Shego, and the doctor frowned. "Of course," she said darkly.

"Hey, don't blame me!" Shego shot back.

"Why not?" Ron asked. "You hit her!"

"You're right, I should have hit you for letting that stupid mole rat get in the way!"

"Apparently Shego couldn't take sharing a return flight home with us, and she had to hit something," Kim said dryly.

Shego scowled at her. "Like you don't want to throttle me while I'm in reach."

"I want to throttle you when you're in another state!" Kim shot back. She handed her mother the Kimmunicator. "Here are the initial schematics of the device, based on what Wade could tell."

"All right," Mrs. Dr. Possible said, "but it will take some time. I want to give you a checkup, Kim, and see how the collar reacts against your skin. Have you tried to remove it yourself?"

A flat look on her face, Shego took a finger and pulled at the ring around her neck. Both collars flared up for a few seconds, jolting both women with electricity. Kim's mother stepped back, putting an arm over her face.

"What the hell was that for!" Kim yelled at Shego when she was able to speak.

"She asked if we tried to remove them."

"I could have just TOLD her what happened!"

"Yeah, but I wanted to see the look on your face when I did it," Shego sneered.

Kim looked positively murderous as she glared at Shego, but her mother got between them. "If you keep that up, Shego," she said angrily, "I'll have you pumped so full of muscle relaxants that you won't even be able to speak properly."

Shego had a dangerous look in her eye as green flames caressed her right hand, but this time Kim pushed past her mother. "If you cause any more trouble, I'll run out that door until the collars shock us BOTH into unconsciousness," she warned Shego. "They can remove the devices just fine whether we're awake or not."

"I'm not afraid of a little pain. Are you?" Shego asked savagely.

"I bet you're afraid of me inflicting the pain on us, not you," Kim said.

Shego winced. "Fine," she muttered. "I'll be good Shego."

"Fine," Kim said. "How about we end this now, Mom?"

* * *

Her mother didn't end it then, and six hours later it still wasn't over. Kim and Shego had been shocked three more times since then, all as Mrs. Dr. Possible tested their collars while Wade watched from the Kimmunicator and offered suggestions. Kim's throat was a deep shade of red and felt raw. Even Shego, normally so pale, had a darkened swath running across her neck.

Kim's mother regretfully finished tying the knot around Kim's wrist. "I don't dare run any more tests," she said. "Your bodies have to be allowed to heal. One too many shocks and it could damage your central nervous system. In the meantime, I realize the two of you feel trapped together as it is, but this is necessary. The rope tied between your wrists is exactly two feet long. There's no way the two of you can drift apart far enough to activate the collars. At least our tests were able to determine that it IS exactly three feet that activates the energy."

"Thanks, Mom," Kim said, her voice tired and sore. She glanced at Shego, who looked too tired to be angry any more. "What do we do now?"

"Well, it IS the weekend. Thank heaven for small favors," her mother said. "At least you don't have to worry about homework or school just yet."

Kim did NOT want to have to explain to people why she was tied at the wrist to an infamous criminal. And Bonnie would probably make some snide remark about their identical "necklaces". "Oh, how sweet," she'd say. "Did Kimmie and her girlfriend get matching rings too?"

She shuddered. That was all she needed, people thinking Kim had a girlfriend.

"Wait a second," Ron said. "If they've got to be together all night, doesn't that mean that - "

Kim's eyes widened. "I have to bring her HOME?"

Shego looked appalled. "Oh, hell no," she said. "I'll rent a hotel room - "

"My daughter is not spending a night alone with you in a hotel," Mrs. Dr. Possible said. "She's still in high school."

"I wasn't going to ravish her or anything," Shego mumbled.

Kim burst into a coughing fit.

"You'll just have to share Kim's bedroom," Mrs. Dr. Possible sighed. "I'll make a place for you on the floor when I get home. Don't forget, no showers, and no washing your hair, young lady. Those collars aren't waterproof, remember."

Shego shook her head and dropped her face into her hands. "Hell," she said. "This is hell, isn't it?"

To be continued . . .


	3. Chapter Three

Title: Undercurrent (3)

Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding".

Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!

Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.

Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 3

"Welcome to our humble abode," Kim muttered as she opened the front door and gestured for Shego to go in first.

Shego glared at her before entering. She hadn't spoken during an extremely uncomfortable car ride home.

"I'm sorry I can't stay, honey," Kim's mother said from the driver's seat of the car in the driveway, "but I have appointments to keep. Please be careful - and don't sever the rope connecting you! Otherwise, you may accidentally - "

"I know, Mom," Kim sighed. "Believe me, I know all too well." She waved and went inside after Shego.

Shego was looking around intently. "Homey, for a jail cell."

"It's not a prison," Kim said.

"It feels like one."

"You survived the last time you were here," Kim reminded her, referring to the Team Go incident.

"Thanks for the memories," Shego growled at her. "I almost had ultimate power if it wasn't for you."

"Oh, please," Kim said. "We both know you let me win so you could save face in front of your brothers."

Shego's arm hung limply, but green fire glowed in her fist. "You don't want to go there, Kimmie," Shego snarled. "Dr. Drakken went there once, and I had to correct his thinking."

"Fine," Kim grumbled. "Can we not fight? This is going to suck as it is. Having to share my house with YOU - "

"How about having to share your bedroom?" Shego replied, her face showing just how thrilled she wasn't by that.

Kim sighed. "At least we don't have to worry about the shower. Mom said we can't risk getting these collars wet."

"Which means we're going to look like shit in the morning," Shego pointed out.

"Well, unless you're suggesting we should give each other _sponge baths_?"

Shego shuddered. "Please, not an image I appreciate."

This was going to be a long night, Kim thought. She'd never be more than a couple feet from someone who lived to needle and provoke her. She couldn't exactly leave the room and slam the door to get away from Shego, not unless she wanted to be unable to move anywhere.

And she didn't even have Ron to keep her company. He had homework and dinner to get to, and anyway, Kim had discouraged him from coming over. Instinctively she knew that Ron's presence would only further fray Shego's nerves, leading inevitably to a confrontation that would only get them both electrocuted.

Shego bringing up hygiene made Kim think of something else. "Are you going to sleep in that?" she asked, pointing at Shego's distinctive green-and-black outfit.

"I wasn't planning - oh," Shego realized, and her frown only deepened.

Kim massaged the bridge of her nose. She could feel the headache coming, and it had nothing to do with the collar. "I can find you something of mine to wear," she said. "We're the same size."

"How the hell would you know that?"

"Remember when Drakken made me wear one of your outfits?" Kim asked, unwilling to go into further detail about that embarrassing incident. "It fit perfectly."

"Oh," Shego said. Clearly she knew what Kim was talking about. "I never did get those clothes back, you know."

"Well, you can keep your sleepwear then, and we'll call it even."

"Like I'd keep something of yours," Shego sneered, and Kim was left seething. "Dr. D," Shego went on, turning her attention to yet another cause of her irritation. "When I see him again, he is SO dead."

"Something we can agree on, anyway," Kim said.

Shego chuckled bitterly. "The only thing, I bet."

Kim shrugged. "Let's go upstairs, anyway. I might as well show you where you'll be sleeping with me."

"Sleeping with you? I hardly think you're my type."

Kim's cheeks turned bright red, and Shego chortled at her discomfort. "Not like that!" Kim squeaked.

"I'm sure. As if a princess like you would ever shock your parents like that," Shego said.

Kim glared at Shego. She wanted to argue with her, but what was she to say? "Actually, I have boys over all the time." Well, actually that was technically true, but the idea of she and Ron even sharing a kiss was crazy. It'd be like kissing her brother.

She blinked. Speaking of which, where WERE the tweebs?

A flash went off, blinding them both. Kim cleared her eyes and looked up the stairs.

"What will the caption read?" Jim asked thoughtfully, lowering the digital camera.

"How about, 'Kim Possible Brings Home New Pet; Parents Furious'?" Tim suggested.

Kim looked at Shego and realized they were comparing the rope tied to their wrists to a makeshift leash. "Tweebs!" she shouted warningly.

Shego didn't speak. She just growled as she raised her free hand, preparing to fling plasma at them.

Kim slapped her arm down. "Not in the house!" she hissed.

"Try and stop me!" Shego snapped.

Kim brought her own arm up and held her fingers centimeters from the collar around her neck.

Shego sullenly let the flames die.

"Interesting," Tim and Jim agreed quietly. Jim put the digital camera aside so it wouldn't get damaged, and then both brothers slid down the banister.

"You guys are so begging for it," Kim warned them as they reached the bottom and nimbly dodged under Kim's arm.

As she turned to shout after them, Tim's hand darted toward her neck and gave the collar a gentle yank. The twins were blissfully unaware of what would happen, and knew only that whatever the result would be, Shego wouldn't like it.

They were right.

Kim and Shego screamed as a jolt of electricity ran through their bodies, moderate in strength but enough for them to be briefly surrounded by a crackle of white energy. Kim fell to her knees as the electrical surge ended, leaving her brothers staring at her, stunned.

"When I get my hands on you two," Kim croaked, breathing heavily, "you'll wish I let Shego blast you."

Knowing they'd crossed a line, the tweebs bolted out of the room. Kim couldn't even try to follow. The role connecting her to Shego was pulled taught as Shego wearily leaned against the wall, panting.

Kim reached her limit. "If you want to pick a fight with me tonight, go ahead," she whispered. "But I don't have the energy."

Shego rubbed futilely at her neck, unable to massage the most tender part without moving the collar and delivering another shock. "Fine," she said in resignation.

Kim got to her feet and led Shego upstairs. The silence was blessedly good.

* * *

"It's all that Kim Possible's fault!" Dr. Drakken shouted into the phone illogically, considering she had absolutely nothing to do with the second collar finding its way around Shego's neck. "I was going to have Shego steal something for me tonight, and now my timetable's all gone to H-E-double hockey sticks!"

"Yes, how very bad for you," Monkey Fist said drolly on the other end. "Now perhaps you'd be so good as to explain how you got this number and why you feel it necessary to bother me?"

"Normally I'd be telling Shego this, but as you may have figured out by now, we're not exactly speaking to one another," Drakken muttered.

"I see. Well, this has all been very interesting, but I really must go. I don't see what the problem is. Even if the collars kill Shego, they'll also kill Kim Possible, and then you won't NEED a bodyguard . . . "

"That's easy for YOU to say," Drakken snapped at him. "You can just send monkeys to steal things for you."

There was a pause. "I'm sorry, you're absolutely right," Monkey Fist said. He sounded different.

"Eh? I am? I mean, yes, of course I am! Finally, someone who agrees with me, instead of making snide comments. 'That will never work, Dr. Drakken. I'm busy this weekend, Dr. Drakken. I don't know where the EZ-Bake oven is, Dr. Drakken.'," Drakken mimicked, shaking a fist.

"Terribly sorry you have to listen to all that," Monkey Fist told him. "I suspect you could do without that kind of backtalk?"

"I'd settle for her looking at me when she talks, actually."

"But she can't now, because of the collars."

"Yes, they - "

"And if Kim Possible and Shego are more than three apart for more than a minute, they'll die."

"Yes, it was going to be a fool - hello? Hello?" Drakken slammed the phone down. "How do you like that? Someone shows signs of actually listening to what you said, and then they hang up on you!"

* * *

"It's over, it's over, thank God almighty, it's over," Shego groaned as she collapsed onto Kim's bed.

"It was just family dinner!" Kim said, annoyed. "I realize you're not used to having an actual conversation, as opposed to a series of snide remarks, but it's what my family does."

"Loo-ooser!" Shego said, her voice muffled by a pillow.

Kim's mother had served soup for Kim and Shego, reasoning that the act of swallowing should be as pain-free for them as possible. Shego had bolted her dinner, evidently hoping to get away from the table as soon as possible. She'd forgotten that, attached to Kim as she was, she wouldn't be able to leave until Kim did. And after her miserable day with Shego, Kim had been starving for time with her parents.

At least the tweebs weren't there. Furious over their unintentional triggering of the collars, Mrs. Dr. Possible had sent them to their rooms without supper. Eventually she'd let them return to the dining room to eat, but not until Kim and Shego had left.

Still, from the moment Kim's father, dimly remembering his encounter with Shego during the Team Go situation, asked her about how "the circus business" was doing lately, Shego had endured family dinner with increasingly little patience. Kim was finally as glad to get her away from her parents as Shego was.

Now Kim searched her drawers. "Here," she finally said, pulling some articles of clothing out and handing them in Shego's direction. "You should be able to wear this with only a _little_ reluctance."

Shego took them and looked at them dubiously. "It'll do," she said. "Where am I supposed to change?"

"Bathroom," Kim instantly said. She didn't want Shego to undress in front of her. With her pale skin, Kim was afraid she might stare. And she was afraid of what remark Shego would make in response. Undoubtedly something along the lines of what she'd said in response to Kim's "sleeping with me". "I'll close the door and let the rope run underneath."

Shego shrugged. "Whatever."

Kim led her to the bathroom, her own sleepwear in her arms. Shego went inside and closed the door, leaving Kim to sit next to the wall, keeping her wrist by the door so Shego had maximum extension.

A minute later, the door opened, and Kim scrambled onto her feet. "Finally," she began to say, and then she froze.

Shego stood there in a pair of green cotton drawstring pants that belonged to Kim. Above the waist the only thing she had on was a black lace bra. The rest was bare, showing her oddly-hued skin. The rope was partially obscured by hanging folds of fabric, and Kim slapped her forehead, knowing what was wrong before Shego even spoke. "I can't exactly take this off while we're tied together," Shego said ruefully.

Kim untied the rope from her wrist, and Shego did the same, pulling her unitard off. "Why didn't you just untie your end?" Kim asked.

"How would you put your nighties on?"

"Oh. Right." She paused. "Nighties?"

For the first time in hours, Shego grinned. Then she pulled on the oversized black T-shirt Kim had given her. "Satisfactory," she grumbled.

Kim traded places with her and closed the door, being careful to stay close to the door now that the rope wasn't keeping her within bounds. As she undressed, she reflected on one crucial difference between her body and Shego's, besides the skin color - Shego's breasts were definitely bigger. Kim knew it was because Shego was older, and that hers would get larger with age, but for now, she envied the villainess.

"Done," Kim said, knocking on the door.

Shego opened it and gave Kim her end of the rope. Shego had already tied it around her own wrist. Kim put it on and followed her back to the bedroom.

"It's too early to go to bed," Shego sighed. "But I'm exhausted."

"Me too," Kim said.

"Careful there, pumpkin. We agree on too many things, our heads might expl . . ."

Shego's voice trailed off, as she realized how distinctly unfunny the joke was that night. Kim stopped herself from tugging self-consciously at her collar.

"Come on," Kim said. "Mom got blankets out for you to lie on." She unrolled the linens her mother had left, so that Shego could be relatively comfortable on the floor directly adjacent to Kim's bed. "Which direction do you normally sleep in?"

"Huh?"

"Well, I sleep that way," she explained, showing her where the pillow was. "If you slept with your head in the other direction, there's a greater danger that our collars could go off if we moved too much in our sleep."

"Oh," Shego said. "No, that's fine." She took the two pillows Kim's mother had left for her own head and lay down.

Kim lay in her own bed - _very_ carefully. Using two pillows, she kept her head elevated enough so that the collar wouldn't press against the mattress and move while she slept. Even so, they both knew there was a real possibility that their collars would go off in the middle of the night.

That, combined with the unfamiliar collars themselves and the rope rubbing against her skin, was going to make tonight one of the most uncomfortable nights she'd ever slept in her own room. Maybe THE most.

She wished Ron was here to tell her it'd be all right. But all she had was Shego - who was neither inclined to comfort Kim, nor in any position to offer hope. She was in as difficult a situation.

Kim discovered she was scared as she turned off the lamp by her bed.

"Good night, Shego," she said, suddenly desperate for some kind of word from her enemy.

" . . . night, Kimmie."

Shego would never confess to having similar feelings.

Despite Shego's earlier comment, they found one more thing to agree on - sleep came very slowly.

To be continued . . .


	4. Chapter Four

Title: Undercurrent (4)

Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding".

Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!

Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.

Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 4 

Kim opened one eye. Then the other. What the - ?

Then she looked to her right and remembered. Of course. Shego.

That was why she had been sleeping - sitting up.

Kim and Shego's careful attempts to sleep in such a way as to avoid setting off the collars had failed. Twice during the night, they were activated. Desperately Kim had proposed an idea she got from a movie they showed in science class last week, The Elephant Man. There a man with an oversized head slept sitting up every night, because if he were to sleep lying down, the first time he rolled over in bed his neck would break because his head weighed too much.

The idea had been similar. Push the bed against the wall, use pillows to make their sleep less uncomfortable, and sleep sitting up. And that, at least, had worked.

Neither had even commented on sharing a bed, albeit in a situation where they were sitting two feet apart from each other.

Kim couldn't wake Shego after the night they'd had, but she needed to check the time, and she couldn't see the clock from where she was sitting. Careful not to do anything that would set her collar off, Kim crawled over to where she could see the clock readout . . .

. . . and screamed when the electricity hit her.

The convulsion that yanked Shego from sleep came so hard that she smashed her head backwards into the wall, and she grabbed her head with both hands. "Nice move, Kimmie!" she snarled.

"It wasn't me!" Kim cried out. "You must have moved - in your sleep," she managed to add.

"Then why isn't it _stopping?_!"

Kim realized the pain was going on longer than usual, and it seemed to be increasing. She tugged on the rope, but it hadn't been severed. What was happening? Was this the end? Did the devices have timers?

Shego growled through her gnashing teeth. "If I've gotta go, I'm taking you out first!" she screamed as she threw herself at Kim, arms outstretched.

Her hands grabbed at Kim's shoulders just as the collars deactivated.

Both looked at the other in confusion.

"I'm trying to decide whether to ask what the hell happened," Shego finally said, "or to just moan in pain."

"Moaning sounds good," Kim said. Her voice was almost unrecognizable from her throat always being where the electrical charge originated.

"I'm almost afraid to let go," Shego admitted. "Maybe it'll start again."

"Well, we can't stay like this forever," Kim pointed out.

Carefully Shego let go, and nothing happened. "Okay, let's analyze," Kim went on. "What was the last thing either one of us did before the electricity shut off?"

"I tried to strangle you," Shego said bluntly.

"Somehow I doubt it was cowed by your homicidal rage," Kim replied. "But . . . you had to get closer to strangle me."

"We're never more than three feet apart thanks to this," Shego reminded her.

Kim frowned. "Maybe things have changed. Come on, stand up. Carefully."

Gingerly they got off the bed. Neither woman enjoyed having to move about like a pair of invalids, but frankly that was what they were close to turning into. Their bodies had withstood a lot of torture over the past couple days because they'd always been in such top physical shape. They were starting to get worn down, however.

"Okay," Kim said. She untied the rope from her wrist and held onto the end. "I'm going to back away slowly. If the rope gets taut and nothing happens, fine. If not - then we've obviously got a problem."

"A bigger problem, you mean."

"Right," Kim sighed. She began inching backwards.

A minute later, they were hit with something very familiar, and extremely unwelcome. Teeth gritted, Kim quickly took a step forward again, and the collars turned off once more.

Kim and Shego looked down at the rope. Part of it lay sprawled on the floor.

"That wasn't three feet," Shego said.

"Bigger problem," Kim said.

* * *

"How far apart were you?" Mrs. Dr. Possible asked, trying not to sound worried but failing. 

"About two-and-a-half feet," Kim told her over the phone. "We're closer than that now."

"Something's obviously going wrong. Perhaps the number of shocks you've received is causing the collars to start to break down, although I'm no mechanical expert."

"Great," Shego muttered as she listened in on their conversation.

"I'm in the middle of surgery, Kimmie," her mother said regretfully, "but as soon I'm finished, we'll bring you into the operating room and decide on the best way to remove these collars immediately."

"Thanks, Mom," Kim said. "You know what? It's only an hour to the hospital by foot. I think I'd rather walk than wait for you to pick us up. Get this over with ASAP."

"Don't you know how to drive?" Shego asked irritably.

"Hello? No car?"

Shego blinked. "Oh, yeah."

"If you think you're up to walking a few miles," her mother said dubiously.

"Neither of us are used to all this inactivity," Kim said. "Walking might do us good."

"All right, dear. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom," Kim told her with the utmost seriousness. Then she hung up. "Well, guess we should get dressed."

Shego grumbled. "I'm dirty, I haven't washed, my hair's a mess, and I'm going to have to wear yesterday's clothes. And now we're going outside. Perfect."

Kim lost her patience. "Then go through my closet and pick something out! These stupid collars are killing us, so I don't need your complaining too!"

Shego actually flinched. "Sorry," she muttered. "Fine, I'll go through your stuff."

Five minutes later, Shego was trying the best she could with her hair while Kim finished pulling on her white T-shirt with the pink trim, and a pair of pink pants. Shego had found a sleeveless tank top in the shade of lime green she usually wore, and a pair of jeans that was a darker shade of green. Kim didn't understand why Shego always had to wear green and black, especially considering the colors originated from her Team Go days, but she supposed Shego was trying to find some shelter in the things she was comfortable with. "Should we shorten the rope?" Shego asked.

"As a precaution, yes," Kim agreed, "but there's no guarantee that two-and-a-half feet will remain a safe distance. We should try to stick together." She hesitated. "I've got an idea, in fact, if you're as strong as I am."

"I'm stronger," Shego sneered. "What is it? Iron chains?"

"Worse," Kim said. "We hold hands."

Shego gaped at her.

* * *

"My humiliation is complete," Shego thought. "I'm walking through suburbia in my archenemy's clothes, holding my archenemy's hands like we're best friends for life. Or worse, girlfriends!" 

"Shego can be as mad as she likes," Kim was thinking meanwhile. "I don't like this any more than she does. But if she squeezes my hand any tighter, I'm going to tell her off - or break her wrist!"

Before either could finally explode, a sound caught their attention. They both turned their heads and spotted a black van come barreling around the corner two blocks behind them. The tires screeched loudly.

"Somebody's got a date with a telephone pole," Shego said morosely.

"Who would drive like that in a residential neighborhood?" Kim asked, annoyed.

The van sped along the street, but it began to slow down. As it passed them, it stopped.

"What the - " Kim began to say when the back doors opened.

"Good morning, ladies. Care for a ride?" Monkey Fist asked before grabbing an astonished Shego and dragging her into the van.

"Monkey Fist!" Kim gasped, but a monkey ninja bounded over his shoulder and socked her square in the nose, sending her back a step, before back flipping and retreating into the van. Fist slammed the van doors shut - without noticing the rope connecting them. Then the van shrieked as it began to accelerate.

"Oh, no!" Kim thought, understanding what was happening. Somehow he learned about their problem, and he was trying to put so much distance between them that there was no way they could shut the collars off. "Good thing I wore the right shoes."

As the van pulled away, she kicked her heels against the pavement, causing the rocket boosters to be activated. And since she was still connected to Shego, the van merely pulled her behind it.

Best of all, the collars remained dormant, which meant she had a few moments before they saw her to plan her next move.

Then Kim's eyes narrowed. She'd been powerless for over a day. And she was sick and tired of it. "Screw it," she said.

With the combined speed of the van and her booster shoes, she had no problem catching up to the van and grabbing onto one of the rear doors. Almost casually she knocked.

"Eh?" Monkey Fist asked, opening the other door and looking out.

Kim's foot moved at double speed as it arced out and struck him in the mouth, bowling him over. She followed him inside, allowing her shoes to switch back to normal.

Inside she discovered that two monkeys were driving the van, which had been stripped of its seats. One drove and perched on another's shoulders, who handled the pedals. Another dozen monkeys were piled atop Shego. From the flashes of light, Shego was definitely using her powers to fight them off. But their collars were still inactive, which meant Shego was also protecting her collar from being pulled on. Undoubtedly that was why she was unable to fight off her captors.

Monkey Fist looked at her with hatred. "Your little stroll played directly into my hands, Kim Possible," he said. "I won't let you cheat death now!"

"You're willing to let Shego die to get to me?" Kim asked. "You really are an animal, Monty."

"My name is MONKEY FIST!" he snarled, beating his chest with his fists.

"Here, let me help you with that," she retorted, crushing him with a left-right combo to his torso. He flew back and plowed into the two monkeys at the wheel, causing the van to careen wildly. Everyone flew against the side of the van helplessly, and Kim cried out as the collar once again delivered excruciating voltage to her body.

Because of the close quarters, however, the electrical shock also hit all the monkey ninjas latched onto Shego, and that broke the resistance. They didn't even notice the van smashing to a halt. They just ran past Kim, broke the rear doors open, and leapt from the vehicle.

"Curse you, Kim Possible!" Monkey Fist whined. He shook a fist. "Next time you will die, and even the Monkey Master poseur won't be able to save you."

"If you're the real Master, fight me," Kim hissed as she recovered from the latest shock.

Even in her condition, Monkey Fist's courage wilted, and he climbed out of the driver's side window. "Wait for me, monkey ninjas!" he called as he ran.

Kim shook her head and sighed. "Shego, are you all right?"

"Not exactly," she said as she stumbled to her feet. "Let's get out of here. It smells like monkey poo."

It wasn't until they got outside into the sun that Kim noticed two things. One, Shego's powers had burned the rope so that it no longer connected them.

Two, Shego was seriously injured.

"Shego!" Kim said. The bruises below her cheekbones were comparatively mild next to her wrists and hands. They were bleeding from what appeared to be dozens of cuts, bites, and claw marks.

Shego looked down and shrugged. "They panicked when I used my powers," she said. "I guess they were trying to make the flames stop, so on instinct they attacked my hands. Which would never work, by the way," she warned Kim.

"Forget that," Kim said. "We need to get those taken care of."

"I'm fine - "

"No, you're NOT," Kim said forcefully, surprising Shego. "I've been electrocuted enough times in the past two days to know that I feel like hell, and with all that blood you're losing . . . maybe you hate me, Shego, but let me help you!"

Shego's expression was unreadable. "Always the hero," she muttered, taking a step away. But then she swooned. "Oh - "

Kim grabbed her. Shego didn't fight as Kim led her toward the sidewalk. Ironically, Kim saw that the van had in fact had its date with a telephone pole, as Shego had predicted. That was why the van had stopped.

There was a 24-hour pharmacy nearby, and Kim brought a strangely unresisting Shego there. "Sit here," Kim said. "I'm going to call an ambulance - "

"I don't need - "

"I'm going to call an ambulance," Kim repeated, and Shego muttered something. "And I'm going to get some bandages for your wrists while we're waiting."

"Guess I shouldn't sit down then."

"Oh. Yeah, right. Come on."

Once inside, Kim realized she didn't have any money. Frankly, she didn't care. Leading Shego to the first aid aisle, she took rubbing alcohol and rolls of gauze bandages from the shelves. "_Now_ sit," she ordered.

"Aye aye," Shego grumbled.

Kim sat cross-legged next to her. "This is going - "

"I know what alcohol feels like on open wounds, Kim. You've inflicted enough of them."

"So have you," Kim retorted.

"Damn straight."

"Excuse me, ladies? What do you think you're - oh, my." A manager had just appeared, but his ire faded in the face of Shego's blood-covered hands. "Is she all right?"

"I'm right here, you can ask me," Shego shot back.

"Call 911, please," Kim said. "She needs to get to the hospital."

The manager nodded, worried, and disappeared the way he came.

Shego didn't say anything as Kim applied a bandage to her cheek. She did hiss as Kim poured alcohol on her wrists and hands, heedless of spilling any on the floor. And she remained quiet as Kim slowly but expertly wrapped her arms in gauze bandage until it was halfway up to her elbows.

"Do you hear that?" Kim asked as she finished. "Those sirens are for us."

"Good, because as messed up as we are, we need it," Shego sighed. She looked down at her right hand. Kim was still holding onto it. "You can let go now, if you want."

Kim didn't. She held her arm gently. "Feeling any better?"

"A little," Shego admitted.

"Good. I'm glad."

" . . . Thanks."

They left it at that until the paramedics came in. There was nothing more to be said.

To be continued . . .

Author's Note - The final scene was directly inspired by an illustration by Rina Cat titled "Tending the Wounded", which was itself indirectly inspired by my "Unacceptable Sitch" series. I figured I should show my appreciation for her lovely Kigo art. You can see the picture by going to rinacat ATdeviantart DOT com.


	5. Chapter Five

Title: Undercurrent (5)

Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding".

Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!

Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.

Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 5

"Well," Mrs. Dr. Possible said as she re-entered the examination room with a second doctor in tow, "we have good news, and we have bad news."

"Who's he?" Shego asked suspiciously as she cradled her injured hands protectively against her chest.

"This is Dr. Edwards," Kim's mother explained. "He'll be Kim's primary physician from now on."

"What?" Kim asked, surprised. "But - "

"Kim, you know perfectly well that treating one's relatives can be considered an ethical violation," Mrs. Dr. Possible reminded her. "No one pays any mind when we treat our children's sniffles, but your condition is a different story. Dr. Edwards is a very competent surgeon, and when you go into the operating room, he will be your doctor, Kim."

"You don't have anything to worry about, Ms. Possible," Dr. Edwards, a bluff, jovial man in his mid-sixties told her.

"So who's my doctor?" Shego asked.

"I will continue as your doctor," Mrs. Dr. Possible told her.

Shego frowned. "I'm not sure I like that idea," she said. "You don't like you very much. AND I work for the person responsible for us being in this situation."

"No, I don't like you," Kim's mother agreed, narrowing her eyes slightly. "But I'm oathbound to treat you to the best of my ability. Besides, as your conditions are so intertwined, it allows me to - consult with Dr. Edwards on your case, Kim."

Kim's hand hovered near her collar, wanting to massage the inflamed skin and afraid to jostle the device at the same time. "So what's the bad news?" she asked grimly.

"The shielding on your collars appears to be breaking down," her mother said.

"Eh?" Shego asked.

"We can't say for certain," Mrs. Dr. Possible told them. "Maybe it's the repeated shocks the collars have delivered. Maybe it's a design defect. Or maybe Drew created these collars in such a way as to ensure a - lethal jolt would be delivered sooner or later, no matter HOW careful you moved." Her last words took on a wintry quality as she looked right at her patient.

"Could we save the moralizing for AFTER I'm not living with a death sentence?" Shego growled.

"So you're saying that as the shielding decays," Kim said, "the distance we can keep from each other is going to keep getting shorter."

"Yes," Dr. Edwards confirmed. "And, inevitably, it won't matter how close together you are. The collars will go off anyway and . . . you know what happens then."

Kim nodded slowly. "We die."

"Kim," her mother said quickly. "There IS good news, you know."

"What's that?"

"Well - the shielding on your collars appears to be breaking down."

Shego put a hand over her face. "Wasn't that the BAD news!"

"It's both," her doctor said. "The shielding is the reason why we haven't removed your collars yet. You'll recall that I specifically asked you not to remove your collar with your plasma powers or other means of brute force?"

"Yeah," Shego said sullenly. "So your precious daughter wouldn't get killed."

"So BOTH of you wouldn't get killed," Mrs. Dr. Possible reminded her. "I asked you to picture every invention your employer ever built, and every one that didn't work according to plan. Then I asked you to imagine all the possible things that could happen if you tried to remove it WITHOUT knowing what you were doing."

"I know, I know," Shego muttered.

"The problem is the shielding," she went on. "It's too heavy to be penetrated by the Kimmunicator OR our scanners. Without more than the most cursory knowledge of these collars' schematics, we can't surgically remove them. Plus there has been a concern that Drakken made the shielding as heavy as it is because he was protecting himself from the collars' power source. For all we knew, your collars were radioactive. _But_, even as the collars begin to grow more dangerous, they also grow more transparent to the mechanical eye. At the current rate of decay, we should have a near-perfect idea of how these collars operate in a few hours."

"And in that time," Shego said, "maybe our hair is falling out from radiation poisoning."

"We haven't picked up any levels of radiation since the shielding started to degrade," Kim's mother said. "Which leads us to believe that the shielding was intended solely to control the collars' electric fields, and to thwart any attempts to remove them. So, all we have to worry about now is safely removing them without - "

"Blowing our heads off?" Shego asked morosely.

"Sending so much electricity through our spinal columns that we'll be paralyzed for life?" Kim asked at almost the same time.

They looked at each other, surprised. "Looks like my sunny disposition is wearing off on you, Pumpkin," Shego said.

"As if."

"Ladies," Dr. Edwards said. "I find that hope can be a miracle tonic."

"Exactly," Mrs. Dr. Possible said. "You two just stay here and _don't move_. We'll scan your collars every fifteen minutes until we have a satisfactory idea of how your collars can be removed. You will come through this, Kimmie. _Got it?_"

"Anything's possible," Kim said softly.

Shego snorted.

* * *

"You know what I hate the most?" Shego said an hour later.

"Me?" Kim asked.

Shego didn't respond for a moment. "What I hate," she finally said, "is not living long enough to punt Drakken into the Grand Canyon."

"I have more reason to hate him for this than you," Kim grumbled. "At least YOU weren't the intended target."

"Oh, I'm not even angry about THAT any more," Shego said. "I'm talking about Monkey Fist."

"Monkey Fist?"

"Hello, princess? We both heard him. He knew exactly what separating us would do to us. There's fewer than a half-dozen people in the entire world who knew that. Now, which one of them do you think told Monty?" Shego asked sarcastically.

"I hadn't really thought about it," Kim admitted. "Guess I was more focused on surviving this than I was on who to blame."

"Well, that's the difference between us," Shego said. "Bad girls obsess over how they're going to exact payback, while good girls bandage the wounds of their worst enemies."

Kim sighed. "What, am I supposed to _apologize_ now for doing that? Well, tough. You already thanked me before."

"You're so SOFT."

"So if it had been me, you would have just let me bleed out," Kim retorted. "Is that what you're saying?"

"I - " Shego paused. "I'd have done the same thing," she finally said with a casual air. "Otherwise you'd pass out from blood loss, and I'd have to drag your sorry butt every place I went."

Kim wished she could have seen the look on Shego's face as she spoke, but they were sitting with their backs to each other. Any closer and they'd be chancing their collars coming into contact with each other.

She wished she could have seen Shego's face - because something told her the villainess wasn't being completely honest.

"Except I wouldn't want your gratitude," Shego added. "I'd want you to know I was doing it out of sheer selfishness. And you could just glare at me unappreciatively."

Kim didn't answer her. Shego's stubborn antagonism was infuriating. Even when they weren't fighting, Shego wanted them to be at each other's throats!

And if that wasn't a bad pun, Kim didn't know what was.

"Shego," she did finally respond though, "is there a reason why it's so important to you that people think you're completely heartless?"

"ExCUSE me?"

"In Go City - "

"Do NOT bring that day up."

"In Go City," Kim repeated, ignoring her, "you made it _awfully_ easy for me to take your brothers' powers away from you. Like you wanted to do it yourself, but you couldn't bring yourself to."

"Drakken said I was going soft," Shego snarled, "and I made him regret it. You'd BETTER not be saying the same thing."

"Is it so incredibly wrong for you to have moments where other people's needs matter more to you than your own?"

"Hello! Eeeevil ring a bell?"

Kim grunted. This was getting them nowhere. "So you'd rather I just hated you?"

"You already do," Shego pointed out.

"Uh, no, no I don't," Kim said.

Shego's head almost whipped about, but she stopped herself for fear of getting shocked. "You're joking."

"I think you're insufferable and obnoxious, but so is _Bonnie Rockwaller_, and I don't hate HER. I know Bonnie is capable of doing good things, and after what happened to you and your brothers, I'd like to believe the same of you," Kim told her.

"Then stop believing it."

"Why?"

"Because how the HELL are we going to go on doing what we've been doing if you start wanting to like me!" Shego hissed at her. "We have a very simple relationship. You hate, I hate, you punch, I throw plasma, and either you put me in prison or I get away. Don't go complicating things just because you THINK I care about my brothers, or because I thanked you for treating my injuries today."

Kim didn't know how to respond to that. Shego was so twisted, she made it sound like she WANTED to go on fighting Kim until one of them was six feet under! "So you do hate me," Kim said.

"Well, doy! I sure as hell don't like losing! And I've spent a lot of time in hospitals and prisons because of you! And hey, doesn't look like THAT'S changed lately. So you might as well GET with the program and realize that I'm as awful a person as you used to think."

"Fine, you hate me," Kim said, shaking her head slightly. "But I'm not going to hate you back."

"Suit yourself. Good girls," she said, disgusted.

Another half hour passed, during which time Kim's mother pronounced that as long as the collars remained dormant, they were going to give it a little more time and wait for the best idea possible of how to proceed once Kim and Shego were on the operating tables.

It was a few minutes later that Kim began to notice minute tremors in the examining table they were seated on. Carefully she leaned forward and turned her body sideways, enabling her to look at the woman behind her without pulling the collar away from her.

Shego was sitting with her back straight as a board, and she looked so tense it was almost like the tension was radiating from her in waves. Her shoulders were hunched slightly, and her bandaged hands were clutching the cushioned table like she was about to undergo surgery without anesthesia.

Then her collar gleamed for a quarter-second, and Shego's body trembled.

"Shego," Kim whispered. "What's happening to you?"

"Nothing," Shego shot back, but her voice betrayed her. Even her strength couldn't keep the strain from her voice.

"Your collar's shocking you!"

"Not really," Shego muttered. "It's been zapping me every ten seconds or - so." The last word was delayed as her body shook again from another shock. "Guess it got dinged up a little by those - fucking monkeys. Nothing serious, it just - "

"It looks like it hurts like hell!" Kim said. "I'm calling my mother. We need to operate - "

"No!" Shego demanded. "I can - take a few minor shocks. I figure by the time they come back in, the shielding on - ngh - my collar will be practically gone. What's a little more pain? I want to be - alive tomorrow so I can track Dr. D down and set his nosehairs on - fire."

"And you always have to be the strong one," Kim said.

"Hell yeah."

Kim closed her eyes. Shego wasn't ENTIRELY crazy - her collar wasn't going to kill her like this, and the longer she waited, the greater her chance of survival became. But typical Shego! Suffering in silence, refusing kindness or sympathy for fear of having to show gratitude!

Well, screw that.

Kim craned her head toward Shego's as she swiveled about to face in the same direction as Shego. Then she carefully slipped her arms around Shego's waist and held her tightly.

Shego almost leapt onto her feet, but once again the fear of the collar had become so ingrained that she didn't budge. "What the FUCK are you doing?" she snarled.

"Being the good girl," Kim murmured.

"Let go!"

Kim's response was delayed when she felt the electric shock run through Shego's body and into hers. It was no minor shock. It HURT, especially in the condition they were in. "No," she said. "You could pry yourself free, but what are the chances you'll set them off again in doing so?"

"I don't know what you think you're trying to prove, Kimmie," Shego said, enraged, "but - "

"I'm not going to hate you," Kim interrupted, "and I'm not going to let you shoulder this alone. I - unh - guess I just like to revel in my softness."

Shego shook her fists in the air gently, but she didn't try to pry Kim's arms off of her. And a minute later, she leaned back carefully into Kim's comforting embrace. But she cursed herself for her weakness, so that made it all right. Kind of.

To be concluded . . .


	6. Chapter Six

Title: Undercurrent (6/7)

Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding".

Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!

Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.

Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 6

"All right, Miss Go is ready for surgery," the anesthesiologist told Mrs. Dr. Possible.

"Good," she said. She turned to Kim. The two young women were in a most unusual position for an operating room. Had someone entered the room and taken a quick glance, he might have thought they were Siamese twins conjoined at the head. Shego and Kim were both lying down on separate operating tables, their heads raised in such a manner that their collars could be attacked from any and all points of entry. The collars were as close to each other as possible to minimize the shocking effect.

_Minimize_ was the operative word. She was still upset with both women for their failure to notify their doctors that Shego's collar had begun administering medium shocks no matter HOW close the two collars were to each other. "What's a little pain when lives are at stake?" Kim had asked.

"Of course your life is what matters most to me, Kim," she had replied, "but I'm also concerned about the quality of that life. There's a point where repeated electrocution can have long-term effects on a person's nervous system. You know about THAT danger as well as I do, judging by what you said earlier about paralysis."

Kim had looked down, and Mrs. Dr. Possible had been forced to suppress her frustration. Getting angry at Kim in her condition was completely unacceptable.

The fact remained, however, that even now while she slept, Shego was being shocked by her collar at ten-second intervals. This had created an added complication. If any doctor was in contact with the collar during one of those electric pulses, he or she would ALSO be shocked. Thus they'd been placed in the difficult position of having a nurse to one side counting off every ten seconds. Mrs. Dr. Possible and Dr. Edwards would be working simultaneously on Shego and Kim's collars, but every ten seconds Mrs. Dr. Possible would be given a two-second warning. Her colleague would be forced to stop working as well, even though Kim's collar had not begun shocking her, because there was a fear that if he got too far ahead of her, Shego's collar would go into danger mode and kill the woman.

Mrs. Dr. Possible sighed. This wasn't a brain she was about to operate on, but considering how devilishly tricky a proposition brain surgery was, neurosurgeons such as herself were an excellent choice. Still, this would be one of the most unique and difficult operations of her career.

"Mom?"

She looked down at Kim. She hadn't been anesthetized yet. "Sorry," she said. "I was just thinking."

"I'm sorry about before."

"It's all right, honey," Kim's mother said. "You just go to sleep now, and when you wake up, this will also be a very bad memory."

"Good," Kim murmured. "I love you, Mom."

Mrs. Dr. Possible blinked back a tear. "I know, sweetie. Your father and I love you too." Kim's father was pacing outside somewhere. She assumed Ron was with him, although she hadn't seen Ron in quite a while. Where else could he be, though? She looked at Dr. Edwards. "You can begin whenever you're ready, doctor," she told him.

He nodded. "Since Ms. Go is taken care of, let's put Ms. Possible under then."

"Mom?"

"I'm here, Kim."

"I'm - not sure Go is her last name."

"Any idea what IS?"

"I don't think we're ever going to be close enough for me to ask that question, Mom."

"Well, Go will do for now," Mrs. Dr. Possible said. Although what kind of parent would name their daughter "She" was beyond her.

As the mask was lowered onto Kim's face, Mrs. Dr. Possible turned her head slightly. What was that noise? There appeared to be some kind of commotion outside the OR. Didn't people understand that you were supposed to be _quiet_ in -

"You may think you're all that . . . eh, Stoppable - "

Mrs. Dr. Possible gasped. "Hold it!" she said to Dr. Edwards. She walked toward the OR doors and flung them open.

"But you're not!" Dr. Drakken shrieked at Ron.

"Drew," Mrs. Dr. Possible said with a menace that was barely contained. "What are YOU doing here, after what you did to my daughter!"

He cringed from her, but Ron was right behind him and he wasn't able to back away. "Uh, well, hello," he said. "You're looking well - "

She grabbed him by his blue coat, a physical move that surprised them both. "You tried to KILL Kim, and you still might succeed, you bastard," she growled.

Dr. Drakken offered her the rolled-up papers in one hand. "These are the designs for my invention," he said. "You should be able to use those to deactivate them."

"Why should I believe you?" she asked, eyeing the plans suspiciously.

"Because I have come to the realization that Shego's life is too important!" he said grandly.

Mrs. Dr. Possible just looked at him.

Dr. Drakken stomped his foot. "The buffoon wouldn't have been able to drag me here if I had had Shego!" he wailed.

"Hello? I have a name, _remember?_"

The mad scientist grumbled and pulled a white index card from his pocket. "Ron Stoppable," he muttered, reading aloud from the card.

"Better," Ron said. "Although I may have you write my name one hundred times when this is over."

"Ron?" Mrs. Dr. Possible asked, startled. "You brought him here?"

He turned slightly red. "Yeah, well, Wade helped. After KP suggested that having me around wouldn't exactly improve Shego's mood, he got me Drakken's location."

"Still, he must have henchmen and death rays and - "

"My henchmen have the day off," Dr. Drakken grumbled.

"Kim needed those plans," Ron said simply. "The other half of Team Possible - other two-thirds, right, buddy?"

Rufus poked his head out. "Uh-huh, uh-huh."

"We don't help save the world for nothing, you know?" Ron finished.

Mrs. Dr. Possible finally took the plans from Drakken's outstretched hand. "Thank you, Drew," she said insincerely. "I'll make sure the police know you're to be kept in maximum security prison."

"Eh, maximum - security?"

"We wouldn't want Shego finding you when she comes through this, would we?"

Dr. Drakken whimpered.

* * *

Kim's eyes slowly opened. "Mom? Shego?" she croaked.

"KP?"

"Ron," Kim whispered, turning her head to the left. She realized she was in a hospital bed, and Ron was sitting next to her. "You came."

"Hey, what are friends for?" he asked, his infectious smile appearing in an instant.

Kim wanted to reach toward her neck, but she was afraid to. "Ron - is it?"

Ron took her hand by the wrist and placed it gently against her neck. The only thing she felt there was layers of gauze and bandaging. "It is," he confirmed.

She breathed a sigh of relief, but she wasn't out of the woods yet. Gingerly she tried to wiggle her toes, and she was gratified when they all moved. "Do you know if there were any complications?" she asked anyway.

"Actually, it only took a couple minutes."

"That's ALL? After all that?"

"Well, it DID become much easier when your mother got all of Drakken's original designs for the collars," Ron told her.

Kim stared at him for a moment. "It was you, wasn't it?" she said. "You - you got them for me. You went to his hideout all by YOURSELF, and you got them, right?"

"Wade helped," he said, just like he'd told her mother. "And Rufus."

Tears brimmed in her eyes. "You really are the man, Ron," she said.

His cheeks flushed and he looked down. "Where'd I be without my best friend, huh?"

Kim nodded. "Same here. Ouch."

"Your mother said your neck is still going to be sore for a few days," he told her. "So you're not going home until tomorrow at the earliest."

"Fine," she sighed. Then she stopped. "So Shego, she's all right too, right?"

Ron scratched the back of his neck. "I assume so."

"You _assume_? Didn't you ask?"

"Well, no one's really sure. She's gone, Kim."

She stared at him. "Gone!"

"All I know is, she came through the surgery fine, just like you," Ron explained. "They put her in a room on the top floor, and they put a guard outside her door."

"But not in her room," Kim said.

"Nope."

"Why didn't they just put her in a wheelchair and push her out the front door?" Kim asked, irritated. Sometimes she wished she had the comet-induced ability to heal extra-fast like Shego did.

Ron chuckled. "Mr. P said she should be all right. She broke Drakken out of prison two hours ago. Actually, 'abducted' is the word he used. Looks like Drakken really, REALLY didn't want to go with her."

Kim smiled. "Remember how angry she was after the mind-control incident?"

"That mad, huh?"

"TWICE as mad."

"Ooo," Ron said. "My heart bleeds for the guy. Still, she won't kill him. And in a week or two, we'll all be back to normal. We fight Shego, we - you, anyway - beat Shego, and we stop Drakken. Just the way we like it."

"Yeah," Kim replied. "Just how everyone likes it."

Or did they?

* * *

Ron's original timetable proved to be completely wrong. True, in less than two weeks Kim was back in mission mode, saving the world as she always did. She took special pleasure in pulverizing Monkey Fist after his latest failed gambit to attain ultimate power. And her mother was relieved to report that there were no signs of long-term damage.

Shego, however, was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Drakken.

Normally, Kim was thankful when the villains laid low, but this time she felt a different emotion - worry. Two very real possibilities occurred to her as two weeks became two months without a single sighting. Either Ron was wrong and Shego HAD killed Drakken - and she had no idea how she felt about THAT - or Shego's greater exposure to electric shocks had permanently disabled the villainess.

And that idea bothered Kim to no end.

Therefore, it was with gratitude that she greeted Wade's news that Drakken had announced he was in possession of an oversized death ray, and that he would vaporize Australia's major cities unless they made him ruler of the western half of the continent.

Enormous laser cannons and outlandish demands - two hallmarks of Drakken's career as a megalomaniac.

Kim's gratitude was tempered, however, by the fact that Drakken's deranged ultimatum had made no mention of Shego. It was highly unlikely that Drakken would dare to cross paths with her without Shego protecting him, but there was still a chance . . .

And so, as Kim and Ron made their way "down under", Kim discovered that she was more worried for Shego than she was for the people of Australia.

Well, actually, she wasn't worried at all for Australia. After all, she WAS Kim Possible.

* * *

"This is a trap, isn't it?" Ron asked.

The lair was unguarded. The front gate was open. No one could be seen waiting. "Definitely a trap," Kim agreed. "Afraid?"

"Are you kidding?"

Cutting loose their parachutes, Kim and Ron carefully made their way into Drakken's base. Within ten feet of the opening, steel doors slammed shut behind them.

"Original," Kim and Ron said in unison.

"Does _anything_ about this setup strike you as especially original?"

Kim's eyes zeroed in on a small, green glow in the darkness. "Shego?" she asked.

The lights came on, blinding them both. Kim put a hand over her eyes and saw that, despite the hangar bay doors they'd entered through, they were standing in a narrow corridor that appeared to have been hewn from a rock cliff. Shego lounged against the wall at the other end, one hand glowing with plasma. "You were thinking someone else?" she replied sardonically.

Kim exhaled slightly. That was the only sign she gave that she was happy to see Shego like this. "I guess not. Like you said, this feels like one big rerun."

"Tell me about it," Shego sighed. "Dr. D had two whole MONTHS to come up with a plan, and what does he do? He builds a giant death ray! I tell you, it makes me doubt the man's intelligence." Then she chuckled. "Of course, what doesn't?"

Kim looked at Ron. "How about you find Drakken, Ron? I think Shego and I need some alone time."

"Uh, KP? Not exactly a lot of room here."

"Don't worry. I think Shego will let you past. Right, Shego? Let's do girl talk."

Shego cocked her head. "Sure, why not?" she said. "I heard this story about how Stoppable here captured Dr. D all by himself. I'd like to see if it was a fluke."

Ron looked doubtfully at them both. "Um, okay then?"

He made his way toward Shego. When he was almost there, she stepped back and gestured impatiently for him to pass. "Haven't got all day, buffoon," she said.

"Aw man," Ron complained as he kept walking. "I finally get Drakken to remember my name, and now SHE forgets it!"

Shego watched him leave. Then she turned back to Kim. "What say we find something more spacious?" She pounded the wall with her fist.

There must have been a hidden button, because the floor dropped from below the feet of both women, plunging them into darkness. Kim quickly found herself in a cavernous underground airplane hangar that was curiously empty. "I guess the Learjet is late?" she quipped.

"I wanted us to have PLENTY of room, Pumpkin," Shego said. "And Drakken's been awfully keen on giving me what I want these past couple months, considering he almost got me killed twice and all."

"Where have you been?" Kim asked neutrally, not wanting to show any sign that she'd cared.

Shego shrugged. "Two weeks' paid vacation," she said.

"And the rest?"

"Okay, maybe it was more than two weeks," Shego said curtly. "We fighting or not?"

"I guess we're fighting," Kim replied. "It's what you said you wanted."

"SOMEone seems to have figured out that I always get what I want," Shego said, grinning. Then she ran forward, igniting the plasma in her other hand.

Kim supposed this was what she'd wanted too. As they traded the first few kicks and punches, she was struck by how familiar it felt. Familiar almost in a good way, if you ignored the pain element of what they did.

Shego sneered at her as she slashed the air where Kim's head had been a moment before. But Kim had ducked before burying the toe of her boot in Shego's stomach. Shego bent over, exhaling loudly as the air was expelled from her lungs.

"Oh God, Shego! Are you okay?"

The words had left her mouth before she even knew she'd said them. She slapped her hands over her lips, as if doing so could take them back.

Judging by the way Shego's eyes grew round with shock, and perhaps even _horror_, Kim knew they had most definitely not been taken back.

Shego's eyes then narrowed in fury. "What did you say?" she demanded. "What did you FUCKING say?"

"Shego, I - "

"You just have to be so goddamn GOOD, don't you?" Shego snarled at her. "You - do you want to know the _real_ reason I've been gone for two months? I was trying to avoid shit like this! I tried to give you plenty of time to forget about what happened between us, and remember who we really are! We're _enemies_, got that?"

"Shego, it doesn't work like that!" Kim shot back.

"For softies like you, maybe," Shego sneered. "But I can put you BACK in that hospital the same as snapping my fingers!"

They were still just a couple feet from each other, and Shego's fist came toward her face so quickly that Kim, already astonished by the vehemence of Shego's reaction, had no time to block it. Instinctively she closed her eyes.

_And the blow never came._

Kim opened her eyes, and Shego's fist was a mere inch from her nose. She could even feel the heat of Shego's plasma. "Shego?"

Shego lowered her hand slowly. She tried to say something, but she seemed only able to make inarticulate noises.

"That wasn't the real reason, was it?" Kim suddenly realized. "You haven't been gone all this time because of _me_. You've been trying to tell _yourself_ that what happened between us didn't matter to you. You've been trying to forget!"

Shego backed away two steps before her face darkened with rage. She screamed with fury as she turned away from Kim and began throwing balls of plasma into the walls.

Kim just stood there. It looked like their status quo had changed.

Into what, she had no idea.

To be continued . . .


	7. Chapter Seven

**Be sure to read the Author's Note at the end of this chapter.**

* * *

Title: Undercurrent (7/7)  
Author: Allaine

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Inspired by the third season episode "Bonding.  
Feedback: Some of you have been extremely helpful, and I hope you'll continue to do so. New reader opinions are encouraged too!  
Disclaimers: Kim Possible, Ron Stoppable, Shego, Wade, and all other characters from the Kim Possible television series belong to Disney, its television production arm, and the creators and producers of the animated series. All original characters are my invention. I seek no profit from writing this, and expect none.  
Summary: Kim and Shego find themselves having to get a lot more up close and personal than they'd like. NOT part of the "Unacceptable Sitch" series, this is a response to a challenge for a Kim/Shego version of the episode "Bonding".

* * *

Chapter 7

Kim stood motionlessly while Shego vented her anger and frustration by splashing the empty hangar with balls of flaming green plasma. Shego appeared to be throwing her fire indiscriminately and wildly, but Kim was under no apprehension of being struck. And, in fact, she wasn't. Shego remained perfectly well aware of where Kim stood, and not once did she take a shot at her.

"Enjoy your tantrum?" Kim finally asked when Shego stopped swinging.

Shego didn't answer, not directly. She breathed heavily and muttered something under her breath as her shoulders rose up and down.

"What?" Kim asked.

It was only when she drew closer that she realized Shego was not talking to her, was not even really paying attention to her. She was talking to herself in a whisper instead. "One more month," Kim heard her say. "Dr. D owes me that much. Mothball the death ray, ship out to Barbados, by then I'll - "

"Two months didn't help you," Kim said. "Why bother trying for three?"

Shego finally turned on her with a snarl. "This is just so goddamn funny to you, isn't it?"

Kim stepped back, surprised. "Funny!"

"Yeah, ha ha, the evil sidekick that couldn't! You can just waltz right into Drakken's lab and do what you like with him!"

"Look, first of all," Kim said, offended, "this isn't some kind of ruse to get past your defenses."

"Oh no?"

"I'm still here, aren't I?"

Shego snorted.

"Second, I can tell you from personal experience that another month, or even six, isn't going to do you any good."

"Personal experience? You have a lot of experience with being unable to fight your enemies?"

"I have _experience_ with worrying about you," Kim shot back.

"Worrying about me!" Shego said, scandalized.

"I spent the last month wondering where the hell you'd gone to. I thought maybe you'd gotten nerve damage from the shocking," Kim said. "Maybe you couldn't fight ANYone any more."

"I do not need your fucking PITY."

"It wasn't pity, it was concern," Kim said. "It's not pity when you - respect someone."

Shego gaped at her.

"Don't get me wrong, I don't agree with your choices in life, and I think you're wasting your powers and your life on Doctor Drakken," Kim said sternly. "But it's impossible for me to not respect someone who fights as well as you do. Not to mention the suffering you were dealt by your collar, and you bore it all. That kind of strength doesn't come from comets or cheerleading practice."

"Respect, concern, caring," Shego sneered. "Those words don't mean anything to me."

"Now you're just deluding yourself. Otherwise we'd still be fighting right now."

"Our lives would BOTH be easier if we were," Shego said.

Kim privately admitted Shego wasn't entirely wrong. "Whether you're right or not," she instead said, "it doesn't change the fact that we are where we are. What are we going to do about it?"

"I should just start hitting you," Shego growled. "I'd get over it by the third or fourth time."

"If you believe that, then why don't you?" Kim asked.

Shego startled her by doing so. She dove forward, and Kim's first instinct was to dodge. She didn't, though. She didn't even defend herself. The first blow was delivered into her midsection, and she bent slightly. Shego followed with an uppercut to the jaw, then turned 180 degrees on her heel as she threw Kim back with a kick from her other leg.

Kim briefly wondered if Shego even realized she'd powered down first.

As she rolled onto her side and looked at Shego, gingerly touching her chin, the villainess stared back, not trying to kick her while she was down. Then Shego stepped back once, twice, turned away.

"Just in case this is another word that's not in your vocabulary," Kim told her, "I think what you're feeling right now is remorse."

Shego looked to her side without meeting Kim's eyes. "I . . . I looked at you there, and I thought about how much I must have looked like that in the street after Monkey Fist attacked us. And you - "

Kim wanted to tell her to go on, but she knew Shego didn't respond well to direction.

"It . . . meant a lot to me, what you did that day," Shego finally said. "And I just did to you what Fiske did to me."

Yep, remorse.

"Shego," Kim said, "whether you like it or not, whether you're evil or not, what binds us more than a pair of metal collars ever could is our common humanity. Why does it seem like you want to deny yourself that?"

"Because I'm an evil sidekick, Kimmie. Remorse and caring isn't in the job description."

"I'm not sure 'evil' applies to you quite so much now, Shego," Kim said gently.

Shego frowned. "Get up already," she told her. "It makes you look helpless, and we both know how bogus THAT is."

Kim got to her feet. "Now what?"

"Not sure," Shego said. "Being good never interested me much, except when I was clobbering someone. Being bad is what I like being, but now it looks like I'm not as bad as I thought I was. So what the hell am I?"

"You're Shego," Kim replied. "No last name necessary."

Shego chuckled darkly. "Let's go see what the boys are up to. I need to think about this."

"Um, okay. Nice kick, by the way."

"Thanks."

They walked in silence. Silence had been a good refuge for them when they'd been collared, and it worked here.

"All right, I've almost got something," Shego said finally. "Don't say it, it's coming to me, it's - "

"Shego!"

"And it's gone," Shego sighed. "WHAT?"

"Dispose of him!" Dr. Drakken demanded, pointing at Ron, who was surrounded by henchmen.

"Ron!" Kim said.

"Don't worry, KP, it's all under control."

"How?" Kim asked, folding her arms.

"Well, actually it's under Rufus' control."

Rufus waved from his position, standing on a big red button on a console.

"Shego!" Drakken whined. "If we attack the buffoon - "

"Oh, come on, she just SAID my name!" Ron complained, pointing at Kim. "Would it kill you to pay attention for once!"

"The rodent pushes the self-destruct button and the lair goes boom!" Drakken finished.

Shego put a hand over her face. "Dr. D," she groaned, "didn't I say after the fifth or SIXTH time this happened that you should build self-destruct buttons that COULDN'T be pushed by two-pound rats?"

"Eh?" Rufus asked. He stomped down on the button with both feet, and it didn't budge.

"That was my idea for the millennium," Shego said.

"Yes, yes, I forgot about that! Excellent work, Shego! You've - " He seemed to notice finally that Kim and Shego weren't fighting. "Why is Kim Possible not defeated, Shego?"

"Yeah, well, I'd rather not talk about it," she muttered. She pushed past Drakken, swept Rufus aside with one hand, and mashed the red button down.

_This lair will self-destruct in E-minus thirty seconds._

"E-minus?" Kim asked. "Don't you mean T-minus?"

"I knew it was one of those 'ee' letters," Drakken mumbled. "Shego! What are you - you're still punishing me, aren't you?"

"Well, the truth would take too long to explain, so for now, yes, I'm still punishing you," Shego said.

_E-minus twenty seconds._

"Every man for himself!" Drakken screamed, grabbing his nose and running out of the room. The henchmen scattered.

"Why was he holding his nose?" Ron asked.

"Sometimes he forgets if he's in an underwater lair or not," Shego explained.

"Maybe we should - " Kim suggested.

"Not a big deal," Shego said, shrugging. She opened a panel next to the red button. A green button was inside, and she pushed that.

_Self-destruct sequence stopped at ten seconds and holding._

"I always asked Drakken WHY he needed a self-destruct button," Shego said, "and he'd just say it was traditional. Finally I got him to add an abort button."

"He seems forgetful today," Kim said.

"He can't even remember the buffoon's name," Shego said. "Why would you expect him to remember any ideas other than his own?"

"You can't remember my name either!"

"I can. I just choose not to waste the energy."

"Much as I'm enjoying the banter," Kim said, "we still have to talk about the future, Shego."

"Something came to me," Shego replied. "I'm just full of ideas these days."

"What is it?"

"I'm retiring."

Kim blinked. "Retiring?"

"I'm no good for crime if we're going to be like this, and I'm sure as hell not going back to Team Go. I'll just scrape my funds together, find myself a nice beach somewhere, and taking a permanent vacation," Shego said.

"Sounds nice," Kim said. "Boring, but nice. What about us?"

"What ABOUT us? We never see each other again, that's us."

"What? But - "

"Look, pumpkin," Shego interrupted. "Just because I don't like hurting you any more means I want us to be friends."

Kim sighed. "It's your decision, Shego, but I wish you'd at least contact me every so often to let me know you're all right."

"You could give me your number, but I'd just tear it up."

"Which would be a somewhat empty gesture, since everyone on the planet knows how to reach me through my website," Kim said dryly.

Shego grunted. "I'll - send you an email some time."

"I'll take it."

"Yeah, well, I'm also giving you ten seconds to get out of here before the place blows," Shego added, smashing the red button again.

_Countdown reinitiated. E-minus ten seconds._

"Hasn't she ever heard of a head start?" Ron complained as Shego vanished into the shadows without another word, even a farewell.

"Politeness is just one of those words that Shego says doesn't mean anything to her," Kim replied as they ran for it.

* * *

There were four high-profile museum robberies over the next month. The police could only determine the thief was female, and quite skilled. Shego was suspected, but her role wasn't proven.

Kim was asked for her help, but she declined. It wasn't TOO difficult - all four paintings stolen were on loan to the museum from the private collection of Senor Senior Senior. Eventually Wade was able to trace who purchased them on the black market, and Kim busted them instead.

Drakken threatened the world three more times. The first time, he relied on his bargain-basement henchmen. The second time, he shelled out big bucks for top-of-the-line henchmen from Jack Hench, but he had very little left over for death rays, and he was forced to threaten Cleveland, Ohio with a giant vacuum designed by, of all people, Frugal Lucre. The third time, he was just bluffing. The death ray was made of cardboard.

Needless to say, Kim found these missions ranged from "easy" to "not worth the effort".

She never did hear from Shego, though.

One day, Wade told her she had a hit on her website. A "Senorita Ellava" claimed her island estate had been invaded by Marxist guerillas, and she needed rescuing - by Kim and only Kim. Kim noted that "ella va" was Spanish for "she goes", and told Ron she'd be back in a day.

Even if Kim HADN'T known Spanish, she would have known something was up the moment her parachute opened and she realized that she couldn't see any structure on the uncharted island below that could be considered an "estate". It looked completely wild.

The inhabitants were certainly deadly.

"Hey Princess, you better stay on your toes!"

Kim looked up as she trampled through tropical underbrush and saw two balls of plasma descending towards her. She leapt backwards and assumed a defensive posture. What was Shego doing? Had she decided she didn't mind hurting her after all?

Shego leapt down from a tree branch and began raining punches and kicks on Kim. The heroine had little time to do anything but defend, but she also refused to take the few opportunities she had to attack. Shego could be maddeningly unpredictable, but unless she realized this was an elaborate trap, Kim wasn't going to engage her.

"That pesky remorse thing taken care of?" Kim asked as she grunted, absorbing the force of Shego's blows through her arms.

"Why Kimmie, are you saying you were actually in danger of being hit by my plasma?" Shego asked, grinning wildly.

"Well - no."

"Fine then. If I'm not trying to actually HURT you, then I can fight you all day. Because I gotta tell you, permanent vacations are dull as dirt. Almost thought about getting a job."

"Oh, so I'm here to amuse you?" Kim asked.

"Not enjoying yourself?"

She was, actually.

Still, it was weird when Shego suddenly pulled away and threw her, of all things, a bottle of water. "Drink up, pumpkin," she said. "Or the dehydration'll kill you faster than I could if I wanted to."

Kim chuckled and drank. "I'm going to need a ride back at some point, you know."

"You got time for dinner first? I figured we could - get to know each other a little better."

"I thought you didn't want to be friends."

"Oh, I don't. I'm hoping I'll learn that there's nothing to like about you after all. Then I can go back to villainy and the joys of kicking your ass without having to worry about my 'humanity' getting in the way. You, on the other hand, can go on being afraid of hurting me for as long as you want."

"You're taking a gamble. After all, you MIGHT like me more."

"Yada yada. You here to fight or swap fantasies?"

For the first time, Kim was fighting Shego and allowing herself to enjoy it.

The End.

Author's Note - Wow. I cannot begin to emphasize the role that the hundreds of you who have read this story played in getting this story finished. Earlier last year, when I took a moment to review my list of unfinished writing projects and decide which ones I REALLY wanted to finish and which ones I didn't, originally this story was on the "didn't" list. It was conceived as a lark, a response to a challenge, and I had my Unacceptable Sitch series to work on.

And so it sat there, four chapters. And every month, five or six reviews trickled in, people asking me when it would be updated.

I didn't expect people to connect with this story to the extent they did, and that's why I finished this.

You'll notice that this is not technically a "Kigo" story. I figured most of you, if not ALL of you, expected it to be. Certainly review sentiments skewed in three directions - those of you who wanted Kigo, those of you who didn't but assumed it would happen, and those of you who encouraged me not to. I think in the beginning I had some vague idea of making it Kigo, but I went this route for a few different reasons.

One, I chose a very open ending. Readers can assume that Kim and Shego will eventually become lovers, or friends, or quasi-sisters, or enemies again. None of you are wrong. I don't know what will happen to them myself.

Two, I've always said that Kim/Shego is a relationship that needs to evolve over time. No matter how traumatic the collar situation was, it simply wasn't enough to change the dynamics of their relationship THAT quickly. Let's work on them becoming friends before they become lovers.

Three, I wanted the broader audience to enjoy this. There are plenty of readers out there who don't like Kigo for perfectly normal reasons, and I didn't want them to walk away and say, "Oh hell, I knew that was going to happen, that sucked!"

And four, I wanted this to be considered completely separate from Unacceptable Sitch.

I want to thank everyone who had something to say in their reviews. It meant a lot to me.

For those of you who have been reading the Sitch stories, Under the Milky Way Tonight will not begin for a month or two while I work on other projects. Thank you for your patience.

Sincerely, Allaine


End file.
